Erengrad
Second only to Marienburg as a trading port for the northern Old World, Erengrad sits at the mouth of the river Lynsk, and is the Kislevite city most likely to be visited and populated by other Old Worlders. Originally the Ungol capital (when it was merely a walled town known as Norvard), it was later overrun by the Gospodars. Now, Erengrad is Kislev’s main trading city and its largest port. Situated on the coast of the Sea of Claws, vessels from across the Old World, New World, and even Norsca come here with goods, slaves, gems, and precious metals. Kislev does not have a standing navy and, instead, relies on Empire warships and private merchant vessels to safeguard their waters. Erengrad also benefits from extensive defences in the form of cannons, walls, and submerged mines to repel would-be invaders. Still, the waters of the Sea of Claws are dangerous, and all merchant ships are armed in some fashion, many to the standards of other nations’ warships, and can be pressed into service by the Tzarina when needed. Its quays see ships and crews from as far afield as Magritta in Estalia and L'Anguille in Bretonnia, rubbing shoulders with the more familiar faces of Norscan traders, bringing cargoes of whale oil, narwhal ivory, tar and smoked fish across the Sea of Claws. The mouth of the Lynsk provides Erengrad with a warmer lagoon, protecting and sheltering the city from the icy waters of the Sea of Claws and the Winds of Chaos from the north. An island in the middle of the lagoon provides the principal docks; joined to Erengrad proper with a wooden bridge, sunk into the lagoon bed with massive piles. Erengrad's architecture is low, few buildings save temples rise more than two storeys. Its walls are mostly wooden, with a great bronze gate set facing the south-east, where the road to Middenheim begins. History Erengrad was founded as Norvard by the Ungols at possibly the best natural harbour on the Sea of Claws. Its position and ability to act as a gateway to trade ensured its prosperity, and the Tzarina Shoika realised its conquest was essential to the unity and prosperity of the emerging nation of Kislev. She captured the city, drove out the Ungols, and rebuilt and repopulated it as the Gospodar port of Erengrad. The city prospered, attracting traders from across the Old World and even Elves from across the ocean. It also attracted more dubious elements and soon became notorious as a place where one could set up any sort of deal within a day or two of arriving. While it’s true that one could buy anything at Marienburg eventually, it takes longer to make contacts there than at Erengrad. Pirates found it was much easier to sail to Erengrad than to pretend to be legitimate in order to sneak into other ports. This clientele made Erengrad rough but also kept it wealthy, and as the local boyars lined their pockets, the Tzars in Kislev did not care to enquire too closely so long as tax revenue flowed. Over the last century or so, the guilds of Erengrad have been getting steadily more powerful and important, as the boyars distanced themselves from the details of trade, and those who were directly involved became steadily more wealthy. The Great War Against Chaos The Great War Against Chaos was fought in 2302. Chaos armies overran Praag, sacked the port of Erengrad. and besieged Kislev. They were eventually defeated by a force of men and dwarfs, led by Magnus the Pious. High King Alriksson and Ar-Ulric Kriestov. Afterwards. Magnus the Pious became Emperor and re-united the Empire. After The Great War Against Chaos Everything was interrupted by the Chaos Incursion in which Erengrad was sacked. Almost every structure was levelled, and thousands of people were slaughtered by Asavar’s armies. Fortunately, the land escaped the corruption visited on Praag, and when the refugees returned, they were able to rebuild. Rebuilding has proceeded more quickly in Erengrad than almost anywhere else, as they are using building materials scavenged from the ruins and brought in by traders. No streets are free of building work, but all the most important buildings have been rebuilt, and the city functions once more. Both the guilds and boyars had grand plans for redesigning the city to be more beautiful, more welcoming to traders. Unfortunately, they had very different plans, and each group started work on its own ideas. As a result, the city’s street plan is a mess, even more so than before; the old centre of Katarina Square no longer exists; it was replaced with the city estates of a couple of guild families, and most old neighbourhoods have moved or been transformed utterly. The city can still be divided into three broad areas defined by the underlying geography: Harbour, which is over the sea; Low City, on the flat land around the beach; and High City, on the slopes of the hills. The city walls run along the tops of the hills. The city Harbour Erengrad’s natural harbour is good, but it has one major disadvantage: the large area of shallow water between the coast and the deep water haven near the centre of the bay. This predicament led to long piers being built out into the bay, and warehouses—and later homes and businesses—were also built out there to be closer to the ships. Some people expect this area to be poor, but in fact, it is solidly middle class. The strong tides in the bay have a difference of over twelve feet between high and low tide on an average day, which means that the water flows and carries away any rubbish dumped out of homes above it. Even at low tide, there is a foot or two of water under most of the Harbour area, and at high tide, it comes to within a couple of feet of the bottoms of most structures. As a result, the area is surprisingly clean; rubbish is just dumped into the sea and then washed away. The other reason it is middle class is that it is not cheap to build houses elevated fifteen feet or more above solid ground, and the support posts need replacing every few years because they rot in the sea water. It’s a good area for traders to live, and many Erengrad sailors would like to retire here. Most of the reasonable inns and taverns in the city can be found here as well. Structures do not cover the whole of the bay; they did not do so before the Chaos Incursion, and reconstruction is still in progress. Wooden walkways link buildings and turn into piers as they reach the deep water, allowing ships to tie off in safety. Most of the piers float, to move with the tides, and are connected to walkways by double-hinged sections, which slope downward quite steeply at low tide. It is, accordingly, more expensive to load or unload a ship at low tide as the longshoremen have to struggle up and down the slope. The Harbour survived the Storm better than other areas. Whilst much was destroyed, some people managed to isolate their homes and fight off the attacks of bands of raiders. They would have been destroyed had the horde decided to try systematically eliminating all resistance, but it moved on too quickly. These people, who never left Erengrad, have a strong feeling of group identity and pride, though it has not yet translated into political activity. Temple of Manann The Temple of Manann is, of course, in the Harbour. It takes the form of a large ship, supported on massive piers, and at high tide, the keel is under water. It was never designed to sail, but during the sack of Erengrad, the priests destroyed the piers as they prayed to Manann for aid, and the temple floated free in the bay. It was attacked several times, but all attacks were beaten back. The scarred structure is now back in place and was the only temple to survive the fall of Erengrad intact. The priests claim this as a sign of particular favour from their God. High Priest Nadyezhda Dochtalika Vdovyn has been blessed with miraculous powers by her God, and after her courageous performance during the Spring Driving, her authority is absolutely unquestioned. Even those residents who have little to do with the sea regard her with something approaching awe. She has yet to do anything with that authority beyond exhorting people to continue to respect Manann. Since people’s reverence naturally increased from its already high level after the war, Vdovyn is content for now. Other factions in the city occasionally try to enlist her support, but for the most part, they simply try to avoid attracting her opposition, generally by supporting the temple. As a result, the temple has started work on a second building, next to the first, again in the shape of a ship. Since Vdovyn feels it would be blasphemous to do more than repair the old temple, all the money for decoration is spent on the new structure. Harbourmaster The harbourmaster of Erengrad is Radii Synvasalisa. It is the most immediately powerful post in the city, as Synvasalisa has the authority to stop any ship from mooring, to inspect any ship at any time, and to levy the customs imposed by the government. Most previous harbourmasters gained the post by virtue of massive bribery. Synvasalisa gained it by being the only qualified member of the Harbour authority to survive the sack. He claims to have kept up a constant campaign of harassment against the occupying horde, and this is, in fact, only a slight exaggeration. He survived by being stealthy, alert, intelligent, and unscrupulous. He has now turned his talents to becoming rich. It hasn’t taken long; he does not owe anyone any money, so he can keep all the bribes he extorts from merchants. He is sharp enough to keep the graft at a low enough level that no one wants to have him replaced, and he has actually increased the amount of customs duty flowing to the city by increasing the efficiency of inspections. Synvasalisa is now bored, however, and looks for a new challenge. Tilean Quarter The Tilean Quarter used to be built around a spectacular wooden Temple of Myrmidia, but that burned in the sack. The new quarter has a space set aside in the centre for a new temple, but work has yet to begin on it. The quarter as a whole is notable for having a population of about five hundred and a fixed population nearer five thousand. The whole area is controlled by merchant companies, mercenary companies, and crime families who send agents on short-term postings and replace them at least twice per year. The official reason for the shuffling of posts is that Erengrad is a dreadful place with foul weather, worse food, and drink that can dissolve diamonds. Many of the agents appreciate this rotation and feel their superiors are being generous and thoughtful. The real reason is that Erengrad is far enough away for someone to establish an independent power base. Riccioli the Bald, one of the fixed residents, was well on his way to doing that before the sack. He lost everything, including his hair, in that disaster and now rebuilds his contacts. He works as a go-between, introducing people to Tilean mercenaries and merchants and doing the same for Tileans who want contacts in Erengrad. It will take a long time for Riccioli to reach his former heights, and his resulting bitterness against the Ruinous Powers knows no bounds. Hag House The hags have a presence in Erengrad because there are some Ungols in the city. But their presence is smaller than they would like; the hags remember Erengrad used to be an Ungol city, and most of those living here favour a return to that situation. Osul, one of the leaders, favours taking advantage of the depopulation from the war to tip the balance in Ungol favour. She actively recruits Ungols to come and live in the city, and she does her best to get them established. This manoeuvring involves leaning on people to provide loans or other help and hiring freelance agents and adventurers to look into problems faced by Ungol communities or prominent individuals. She would like to see a wealthy Ungol merchant but is prepared to wait. Inalchin, a younger hag, is more impatient and arranges accidents to tip struggling Gospodars over the edge into ruin, death, and, ideally, leaving the city. She does her best to hire non-Ungol agents for these tasks and is remarkably good at hiding her own origins. She looks on the power struggle between the guilds and boyars with barely suppressed glee and is constantly on the lookout for opportunities to fan the flames. Vladimir’s General Goods Before the sack, Vladimir’s was a middling to large general supply store with a group of loyal customers and a decent reputation. Vladimir’s main building, defended by the owner Vaja Rybkin (Vladimir was his great-grandfather) and his staff, survived the sack, and he worked to support the returning refugees. Even without gouging, this made Rybkin wealthy, and so he expanded. He was quickly made two offers he couldn’t refuse and didn’t. The first was from Vladimir Synyuliana, a crime lord who liked the idea of operating out of somewhere already called Vladimir’s. The second was from Tatiana Olgadoch, a local commander for the chekist who appreciated the centrality of the business. Both wanted Rybkin to operate a front for them. Rybkin introduced them to each other and explained his situation, while backed up by the staff who had seen off the hordes of Chaos. Things went better than he could have hoped. Olgadoch immediately saw the potential of Synyuliana as an informer, while Synyuliana could see many advantages to working with the chekist. He willingly promised not to undermine the Tzarina’s authority and to pass Olgadoch information. She, in turn, keeps other law enforcement, such as it is, away from Synyuliana’s operation. For the most part, they stay out of each others’ business. Rybkin has also expanded the legitimate business, and Vladimir’s is now the largest trader in the Harbour, having half a dozen large warehouses (another is under construction), a wholesale office, and two retail stores—one for perishable goods and one for non-perishable. An attached inn provides somewhere for visiting chekist officers to stay, and it has also become popular with foreign merchants because the service is well beyond the price. The truth is, the entire staff is composed of low-ranking chekist, and so Rybkin has no personnel costs. Low City Low City is the poor area of Erengrad. It was almost completely destroyed during the Storm of Chaos, but as its inhabitants were the sort of people with nowhere else to go, they soon returned, joined by those from settlements in an even worse state. People are rebuilding, but all the work is cheap and shoddy, as might be expected. There are still a lot of people living in tents; some of these are Ungols—lured in by Osul—who actually prefer that accommodation. There is a significant advantage to being able to pick up your home and move; Low City is prone to periodic flooding from two directions. The first is unusually high tides, which generally occur a couple of times a year. The second is the Lynsk, which often floods in spring, as the snows start to melt. Tidal floods only last a few hours, until the tide goes out again, but when the Lynsk floods, the water can remain for several days. The areas of Low City nearest the river and sea are thus the least desirable, which means they are inhabited by the poorest and most desperate folks. The areas inland are more desirable but also more dangerous, as they tend to be claimed by groups of criminals with some resources but not enough to make it worth putting up a facade of respectability. These areas are ignored by the authorities for the most part. Bretonnian Quarter The Bretonnian Quarter is in one of the most flood-prone and undesirable areas of the city. Many of the merchants here are from L’Anguille and joke that it reminds them of home for two reasons. One is that the Bretonnian authorities give absolutely no support to merchants abroad, making it hard to negotiate for land in a better area. The second is that most of the Bretonnian merchants in Erengrad are not making very much money; for some reason, they never seem to strike it big. As with the rest of Low City, the Bretonnian Quarter was destroyed during the Incursion. Many of the residents are still in tents and shacks, but a fine, wooden Grail Chapel, raised ten feet above the ground on nine massive wooden pillars, has just been completed. Ferragus of L’Anguille, the only moderately wealthy merchant in the quarter, insisted on building the chapel first, in the hope the Lady would bless them. Other residents noted it would be somewhere to go during the floods. Cannoneers’ Compound The city of Erengrad is one of the few places outside of Nuln in the Old World where cannons are manufactured. The Sea of Claws is possibly the most dangerous stretch of water anywhere, and ships need good defences against raiders, both Human and otherwise. As a result, a strong demand has always existed for ship-based weapons, and the first Erengrad cannon was cast over two centuries ago. The Cannoneers’ Guild has prospered since then and is closely affiliated with the Shipwrights Guild. Erengrad cannons are not up to the standard of those made in Nuln, but they are substantially cheaper and lighter, which makes them better suited to ships. And most captains would rather have two Erengrad cannons than one Nulner. The steady demand means this compound is possibly the only place in the Old World where someone with enough money (typically 1000 gc) can walk in, put down the money, and leave with a cannon. A known ship’s captain could actually do that; anyone else would meet with delays, while the guild tried to figure out what the cannon was wanted for. A few mercenary companies use Erengrad cannons on land, however. The Cannoneers’ Compound was utterly destroyed during the sack of the city. It did take a fair chunk of the invading army with it, as the last guildmaster, Dazhda Kudrov, detonated the guild’s entire store of gunpowder and shot as the enemy approached. The guild has yet to appoint a replacement, claiming they need proof that Kudrov is dead, ideally a corpse. No one really believes he would have left a body, but the guild is uncomfortable with overt hero worship; most believe the actual head of the guild will always be the vice-master in the future. The Compound is in Low City because it is noisy, smelly, and dangerous. Most of the guild members live elsewhere, though a few live inside the walls. Completed cannons are mounted as advertisements near the entrance and elsewhere around the walls. The guild claims they are not loaded, but no gangs have been willing to call that particular bluff. Temple of Verena An empty area of land marks the former location of the Temple of Verena in Erengrad. The Goddess of Justice has never been popular in a city where most people make at least part of their living illegally, and her priests have never been able to afford a temple in the nicer areas. What they had was destroyed in the Storm of Chaos, and so far, they have only managed to clear the land on which they will build the replacement. As a result, services are held in the open air. High Priest Bela Ekomov is fanatical in her devotion to the Goddess and organises the few devout worshippers in the city into anti-crime squads. Most of the time, they have to operate clandestinely, and even when they do get criminals arrested, their victims are often released. Such actions do not make the Verenans popular with most inhabitants of Erengrad, and they are often targeted by gangs or mobs. Ekomov maintains a pure devotion to Verena’s ideals, but many of her flock lean towards vigilante justice. They do not believe criminals will face justice unless they perform it, and so they organise secret trials. While almost certainly correct in the resulting judgement, they are still violating important Verenan tenets, as these followers are not the proper authorities. Verenans are somewhat aware of this and keep their activities secret from Ekomov. She, in turn, is not enthusiastic about investigating vigilante crimes, though she certainly does not consciously condone such action. The Grand Market The Grand Market is the heart of Erengrad, despite being located in the Low City. It is the place where most goods are bought and sold, and just about anything can be found if you look hard enough. For some goods, flimsy cover stories are concocted, pretending they are something else, but in many parts of the market people do not bother. The only exception, these days, is anything related to the worship of the Ruinous Powers. Such goods used to be available to people who could ask the right questions, but now, the whole city is too opposed to the Dark Gods for it to be a safe trade. Those who specialised in it give the new mood a couple of years, at most. The market is heavily patrolled by guards funded by the guilds and boyars, as are the main approaches to it. No violent crime or theft is tolerated, though the sale of contraband and outright swindling are not a concern. Erengrad merchants are strong believers in “buyer beware” and in exacting revenge if someone dares to swindle them. As a result, the Grand Market is safe for people who know exactly what they want to buy, how to make sure it is authentic, and exactly what a reasonable price is. Everyone else gets robbed to a greater or lesser extent. Because the Grand Market is subject to occasional flooding, all stalls are temporary structures, and the merchants simply move them—and their goods—to warehouses in other areas until the floods recede. There is normally ample warning, but a flash flood in the Lynsk can lead to mayhem as all merchants flee for high ground at once. The Grand Market was restored to very near its former glory soon after the hordes left, as merchants arrived and set up to sell to the refugees. It is now flourishing once more, and the area of the Low City around it—devoted to taverns for people who haven’t been sufficiently swindled at the market—is already fully rebuilt. High City The High City is the wealthy area of Erengrad. It is built on the slopes of the hills facing the bay, which has numerous benefits. It raises the houses above the risk of flooding, allows waste to flow away down hill, provides an attractive view, and means the area is sheltered from winds from all directions. As a result, the area probably has the most pleasant climate in the whole of Kislev. High City suffered greatly in the sack, but the number of stone buildings meant there was plenty of material available to rebuild. As a result, it has recovered more quickly than anyone thought possible, and it is common for walls to include fragments of decorated stone from old carvings or rocks scarred by the attack of inhuman forces. Most people think this adds character to the area. As noted earlier, both the boyars and guilds planned to rebuild Erengrad, particularly the High City, on an elegant and unified plan. The area is now completely disorganised, as parts of both plans have been implemented, along with independent building by groups who never cared what the so-called “authorities” said. Main streets dead end into a wall or suddenly turn into tiny alleyways, and it is not uncommon for a building’s blank wall to face a large square, and it’s façade to open into a small side street. For all that, the wealth of Erengrad is clearly visible; traders from the south expecting a semi-barbarian city are greatly surprised. Elven Quarter Erengrad has one of the largest Elven Quarters in the Old World. While it cannot match that of Marienburg, it may be even larger than the Elven Quarter in Altdorf, and it clearly exceeds anything found in L’Anguille or the south. Although the great trading houses in Ulthuan decided to withdraw their personnel before the horde arrived, more than half the Elves stayed to help defend their city. They were all slaughtered and the Elven Quarter razed to the ground. Elves returned soon after the war, and now the quarter is being rebuilt. The bravery of the Elves who stayed gained the race a considerable amount of goodwill, and no one has questioned their motives for building a wall around their homes and warehouses. The wall is thirty feet high and completely finished, and work is going on inside. However, no non-Elves have been allowed within since the wall was completed and the gate hung, so most of the city can only speculate. Money and trade goods continue to flow, however, so the speculation is mostly curious, rather than hostile. Empire Quarter Citizens of the Empire form the largest group of non-Kislevites in Erengrad, but the Empire Quarter is relatively small because many live elsewhere in the city, mingling with the natives. Indeed, about a fifth of the people residing in the Empire Quarter are Kislevites, a much higher proportion than in the other ethnic areas. The focal point of the area is the Temple of Sigmar. The old one was destroyed when the city was sacked, but preparations for building the new one are proceeding well. Stones from the old structure have been gathered and set aside, the ground cleared, and orders placed for new materials. The new temple is intended to be an even stronger fortress than the last, strong enough to survive any future assaults. This fortification has required deeper foundations, and the excavations opened a set of catacombs that appear to be associated with Sigmarite worship, but so far, two groups of explorers have failed to return. The priests, led by Calvin Three-Hammers, the high priest designate, are looking for an experienced group to find out what the problem is. Nothing has come out, so far, and the hole is guarded round the clock. The other main building is the Empire Consulate, and this structure is newly completed. No Imperial consul has arrived as yet, but Chief Clerk Jekil Reichert expects one to be appointed very soon. In the meantime, he is dealing with immediate problems and building up a large stack of papers that need to be formally approved by the consul upon his arrival. Reichert is not entirely honest, and a consul who actually reads all of the papers would realise it. But Reichert does not feel that is likely. Finally, The Shining Comet is an inn and tavern aimed at travellers from the Empire. It provides Empire-style food, drink, and entertainment, and many guests comment that, whilst inside, one might think he was in Altdorf. Kristyn Becker, the landlady, takes that as the highest compliment. Carriers’ Guildhall The Erengrad Carriers’ Guild is the most powerful guild and, thus, the most powerful single group in the city. It now draws together almost all the native merchants, and “associate membership” includes most foreign merchants (and pirates) who visit Erengrad with any frequency. The Guildhall perches on the edge of a cliff and overlooks the Lynsk. The rebuilt version is a fine, stately building organised around a paved courtyard and opens onto a square. The Guildhall was not built for defence; the merchants withdrew to their manors or fled during the invasion, so they decided there was no point in trying to make their headquarters a strong point. One new addition is a dedicated suite of law courts in the west wing. The Tzarina granted the guild the right to enforce the laws some years ago, and they now take full advantage of this, far more so than the other two major guilds. They have become more popular than the boyars’ courts and are now the busiest in the city. Their popularity is because it is widely accepted the boyars always rule in favour of the nobility, while the carriers can be bought. As a result, Erengrad is possibly the only place in Kislev where a rich commoner can throw a poor noble out of his house for poor manners and expect to win the resulting court case. The guildmaster, Mitri Ilchenko, was appointed by the Tzarina after his predecessor went missing during the sack and is presumed dead. Ilchenko has been a guild member for over twenty years and was generally a popular choice. He has enough sense to know he must retain the support of the guild and has only used his authority to ruin one enemy, Natalya Dochviktoria, a woman who spurned his romantic advances in his youth. Dochviktoria now lives in Low City and plots revenge. She no longer has much money, but she does have a lot of contacts and information at her disposal, including some merchants who are sympathetic towards her. Goldsmiths’ Hall The Goldsmiths’ Guild is now composed primarily of bankers and moneychangers, though it does still accept actual goldsmiths. By tradition, the master of the guild is always a craftsman, but most of the day-to-day authority is delegated to the dean—a banker appointed by the master. The Tzarina now has the right to appoint the master and need not follow the tradition, but the current master, Ursola Ovinko, is only thirty years old with no plans of retiring. Ovinko is an immensely talented crafter and pleasant company in social situations, as well as being fairly good looking, so the bankers decided, just before concluding the agreement with the Tzarina, she would make a good figurehead. Ovinko has not been interfering with the running of the guild, and everyone, except possibly the Tzarina, is happy with the situation. The dean, Valantyri Synmishka, is the richest man in Erengrad. He may be the richest man in Kislev and would be immensely wealthy even if he moved to the Empire. While his main activities are banking, he also finances a very wide range of activities. As a result, almost any decisions that benefit the guild and the city also make Synmishka personally wealthier. This arrangement means he is virtually incorruptible; no one has anything he wants. He does not, however, want any competition. He is happy to make his peers richer, as long as they are clearly still poorer than he is—anyone coming close to his wealth had best watch out. The Goldsmith’s Hall is a solid stone building because it also serves as a bank and the Erengrad mint. Rumours have it absolutely full of gold, but it is, unsurprisingly, mostly offices. It was supposed to face the Carriers’ Guildhall across the square and has a fine gate that mirrors certain elements of the façade of the other hall. Unfortunately, the boyars built their castle on that spot, facing away from the square. The Goldsmiths’ Hall faces the castle across a street barely ten feet wide. The castle was built first, so the doors of the Goldsmith’s Hall open inward, which means they can be opened fully. Shipwrights’ Hall The Shipwrights’ Guild represents all the crafters of Erengrad except the workers of precious metal. The guild accepts many crafters as members and has affiliated guilds for some of the more prominent groups such as the Cannoneers. It is the weakest of the three guilds politically, but it represents by far the largest number of people. If it could mobilise them, it would be far stronger. The current master, Maksim Synkazimira, is not going to manage that. Appointed by the Tzarina after his predecessor fled the city—and has yet to return—he has proven to be almost, but not quite, up to the job. He is not incompetent enough to force people to remove him, but he isn’t good enough to do anything more than keep on top of daily requirements. As a result, the guild is basically treading water. The new guildhall is not yet finished, but it stands on the left of the square as one looks from the Carriers’ Hall and is built in a similar style. A number of masons and carpenters have offered to take over the job because the situation is embarrassing, but Synkazimira is reluctant to give up any authority. Castle The castle is the seat of the boyars and used to be the centre of government of the city. The old castle was destroyed in the sack by some foul sorcery that tainted the site, so the boyars chose to rebuild here, where they could best disrupt the guilds’ plans for urban renewal. The castle is a large keep with a single curtain wall and turns a blank face to the square the guilds intended to be the new heart of Erengrad. However, the placement of the Goldsmiths’ Hall means it is not actually possible to open the castle’s main gates fully, for each gate is wider than the street. Access is thus through wicket gates cut into the main doors. Boyar Elena Yevschenko, the young head of the oldest Gospodar family in the area, has begun fuming over the nobility’s loss of authority but has yet to come up with a good plan to restore it. She married into the nobility, but her husband was killed in the sack of the city. Elena lost her left arm, something that has only improved her reputation. Despite her youth, almost all the nobles in Erengrad believe if anyone can restore their authority it is her. Temple of Tor The Temple of Tor is the only substantial building to have survived the sack almost unscathed. Many in the city have taken this as a sign of Tor’s special protection, and the cult has become more popular. The more practical point out it is an empty stone tower on top of a particularly inaccessible hill; there was no one in it to attack, so it probably wasn’t worth the bother. A few conspiracy-minded folks have taken it as evidence that Tor is actually in league with the Ruinous Powers or is just another name for one of them. Anyone letting on, in public, that he believes this is liable to be torn apart by a mob. Temple of Dazh The Temple of Dazh was one of the most spectacular in Kislev, decorated with gold images that reflected the sunlight. The images all went missing during the sack, though rumours persist that a priest managed to hide some of the best before he killed himself to avoid giving away the hiding place when the enemy closed in. Whatever the truth, the rebuilt temple is much plainer. It stands on top of a hill, where the hills to the east dip into a valley, so there are clear views both east and west. Doors in the wall of the temple frame both the rising and setting sun, and these are the only entrances. The eternal flame burns in the centre of the temple and is carefully tended. The Watcher, Gaspar Synpavla, claims to have kept the flame alive throughout the occupation of the city, and no one can prove he didn’t; about half the city’s population actually believe him. Synpavla would like to restore the temple to its former glory, and he takes a great interest in rumours that the Tzarina has started to favour the cult. He would like to send agents to Kislev, subtly offering support in return for decorations for the temple but has yet to find suitably diplomatic individuals. He also has an interest in tracking down any of the old treasures; he thinks some may have been sold, intact, in distant parts of the Old World, and he also investigates the rumours of a hidden cache. For both tasks, he hires outside help. Garden of Ursun The Garden of Ursun forms the fourth side of the main square, on the eastern side. It is a spectacular place, cascading down the hillside among rocks to finish at a pool formed off the side of the Lynsk. It is certainly large enough to house a bear, and some people claim to have seen one there. Chief Priest Uika Boyozi is very enthusiastic about the holidays of Ursun, particularly Waking Day. This large celebration was performed without fail before the sack of the city, and Boyozi put a great deal of effort into the first one afterwards, arguing it symbolised the reawakening of the city, as well as that of Ursun. As a result, the main square has become the centre of the celebration, and it has become even more popular. Some merchants even start sailing early in the season so they can be in Erengrad for it. Some people have started calling the main square Ursun Square or Awakening Square, which annoys the guildmasters who wanted it to be called Guild Square. Temple of Shallya The Temple of Shallya in Erengrad has a long tradition of receiving rich gifts from dubious individuals who need healing with no questions asked. As a result, it is far less austere than most such temples. It has recovered very quickly after the sack because many people needed help and healing, and building work is nearly finished. Shallyans from elsewhere might not immediately place it as a temple, instead thinking it was the home of a noble who was particularly devoted to the Goddess. High Priestess Svetlana Zakarova does not mind, as she is used to the relative luxury in which she was raised as a temple orphan. She is, nevertheless, devoted to Shallya; her position in the city is secure because she remained throughout the sack, helping the wounded and getting people out and to safety. She has no obvious miraculous powers, but most people think her continuing life is a miracle. Frosthome Frosthome is a tower of ice, home to the ice witches of the city. It stands on a peak just inside the city walls and glitters in the sunlight. Most citizens think it is a marvel of magic, an opinion shared by many visitors. Those who have seen the palace in Kislev, however, are much less impressed. The ice witches have traditionally stayed completely out of politics and are currently under strength, as most of them died in the defence of the city. This valour has created a chance for them to move into politics, as many people in the city have a great deal of admiration for their bravery and power, but they have yet to take it. Temple of Morr The Temple and Garden of Morr in Erengrad are unusually large, covering several acres because the area seems to be particularly affected with the power of the dead; the living and Undead who stray within it soon weaken and die if they do not leave. This effect makes it a perfect place to bury the dead, as they cannot rise again and renders the area unfit for anything else. There have been many arguments about the cause and nature of this unusual effect, and few can agree. Morr’s priests suggest that Morr once napped here and thus caused the place to become infested with the killing aura, but the truth is far stranger. Among those who have no cause to fear death and are familiar with Erengrad’s oldest histories know this place was the site of an ancient magical catastrophe that infused the air, water, and soil with killing energy. Over the centuries, this energy has waned, withdrawing to the immediate site and gradually receding with each century. Who and what caused the calamity has been lost, but most claim it involved Dark Magic and the legions of Chaos. The temple was destroyed in the sack, though it took many of the invaders down in the process, and rebuilding is proceeding slowly because the workers must spend plenty of time away from the site. The priests of Morr are in no hurry, however. The people (special characters) Guilds of Erengrad The merchants of Erengrad formed into guilds some time ago and spent a long time trying to persuade the Tzar to recognise them and grant them privileges. Tzar Boris never did, as he had little time for merchants. Katarin, however, saw their potential as a power bloc that was not yet aligned to any nobles. She granted them many of the privileges they wanted, as well as the title of druzhina to some of the guild masters, in return for direct service and loyalty to the Tzarina. The most onerous condition—and one some guild members wanted to reject—was the Tzarina’s demand she be allowed to appoint the guild masters. In the end, however, the privileges in trade, legal rights to govern trading conditions, and personal honours for the current guild masters (all of whom she promised to confirm in their positions) won out. The Tzarina has thus far kept her promises to the guilds, and through her efforts, they have greatly expanded their power within Erengrad. This said, in appointing the two guild masters, she went to great lengths to select men with considerable support within the guild, thus ensuring she made popular choices while also befriending some of the most influential members within Erengrad’s guilds. As one would expect from such shrewd plotting, the guilds have become quite loyal to Katarin, especially since their ascent has weakened the traditional nobility of Erengrad. As these nobles had a reputation of fierce independence, their waning influence sees their former power falling into the hands who support the distant monarch. The boyars of the city are certainly not happy, but as yet, few talk of rebellion. Streltsi The streltsi were originally a rota of kossars from Erengrad. Led by Boyar Boydinov—an eccentric noble obsessed with the Empire—they wielded pole-axes rather than axes, mirroring the halberds favoured by the State Regiments of Ostland. In 2345 IC, whilst driving back a Chaos horde alongside Empire allies, the wide-eyed boyar witnessed Imperial black powder for the first time. His kossars were changed forever. Now, many years after the death of Boydinov, the streltsi are the foremost masters of firearms in Kislev, weapons once viewed with fear and superstition. Soldiers from across Kislev travel to Erengrad to earn the crossed “berdysh and handgun” badge, which is awarded to any who train with the streltsi for more than two seasons. Sources * : Warhammer RPG 2nd Edition: Realm of the Ice Queen ** : pg. 10 ** : pg. 28 ** : pg. 61 ** : pg. 62 ** : pg. 64 ** : pg. 65 ** : pg. 66 ** : pg. 67 ** : pg. 68 ** : pg. 69 ** : pg. 105 * : Warhammer Armies: Kislev (6th Edition) ** : pg. 1 * : Warhammer RPG 1st Edition: Core Rulebook ** : pg. 278 ** : pg. 279 * : The Empire at War (2006) ** : pg. 67 es:Erengrado Category:Cities of Kislev Category:Erengrad Category:E